how to prevent and tackle ullying and school violence · gedimino ave. 50, lt - 01110 vilnius,...
TRANSCRIPT
ISBN 978-92-79-49062-0
How to Prevent and Tackle Bullying and School
Violence
Evidence and Practices for Strategies for Inclusive and Safe Schools Executive Summary
This document has been prepared for the European Commission however it reflects the views only of the authors and the Commission cannot be held responsible for any use which may be made of the information contained therein
Europe Direct is a service to help you find answers to your questions about the European Union
Freephone number ()
00 800 6 7 8 9 10 11
() The information given is free as are most calls (though some operators phone boxes or hotels may charge you)
More information on the European Union is available on the Internet (httpeuropaeu) Luxembourg Publications Office of the European Union 2016 ISBN 978-92-79-49063-7 doi 102766765403 copy European Union 2016 Cover image copy depositphotoscom Reproduction is authorised provided the source is acknowledged
How to Prevent and Tackle Bullying and School Violence
2
AUTHORS
Paul Downes Institute of Education Dublin City University
Carmel Cefai Centre for Resilience and Socio-Emotional Health University of Malta
CONTRIBUTORS
Laima Vaigė Mykolas Romeris University Institute of International and European Union Law
Vanessa Jantzer Department of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry Center for Psychosocial Medicine University of Heidelberg
Yves Montoya LACES EA 4140 University of Bordeaux
Georgios Zarifis Department of Education Aristotle University of Thessaloniki
Emil Buzov Step by Step Program Foundation
LANGUAGE EDITOR
Siobhan Denham Freelance copy-editor proofreader
ABOUT THE AUTHORS
Dr Paul Downes is Senior Lecturer in Education (Psychology) Director of the Educational Disadvantage Centre Dublin City University Ireland He has been involved in various expert advisory roles for the European Commission including for its School Policy Working Groups He has been a Visiting Research Fellow at University of Cambridge Lauterpacht Centre for International Law a member of the Irish Senate and Parliament Expert Advisory Group on early school leaving an advisor to the Irish National Disabiliity Authority report on bullying and a consultant for the OSCE (Organisation for Security and Cooperation in Europe) Published internationally in areas of psychology education law philosophy anthropology and social policy he has given keynotes and invited presentations in more than 20 countries Email pauldownesdcuie
Professor Carmel Cefai PhD (Lond) FBPS is the Director of the Centre for Resilience and Socio-Emotional Health and Head of the Department of Psychology at the University of Malta He is Joint Honorary Chair of the European Network for Social and Emotional Competence and joint founding editor of the International Journal of Emotional Education He has led various research projects in mental health in schools risk and resilience in children and young people childrenrsquos wellbeing and the development of a resilience curriculum Recent publications include RESCUR Surfing the Waves A Resilience Curriculum for Early Years and Primary Schools (2015) published in 7 languages and Social and Emotional Education Primary School Integrating Theory and Research into Practice (Springer USA 2014) Email carmelcefaiumedumt
ABOUT THE NETWORK NESET II is an advisory network of experts working on the social dimension of education and training The European Commissionrsquos Directorate-General for Education and Culture initiated the establishment of the network as the successor to NESSE (2007-2010) and NESET (2011-2014) The Public Policy and Management Institute (PPMI) is responsible for the administration of the NESET II network
Please cite this publication as
Downes P Cefai C How to Prevent and Tackle Bullying and School Violence Evidence and Practices for Strategies for Inclusive and Safe Schools NESET II report Luxembourg Publications Office of the European Union 2016 doi 102766765403
CONTRACTOR
Public Policy and Management Institute Gedimino ave 50 LT - 01110 Vilnius Lithuania Phone +370 5 2620338 Fax +370 5 2625410 wwwppmilt
Director Haroldas Brožaitis
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS
Many thanks to Laima Vaige Vanessa Jantzer Yves Montoya and Emil Buzov for their background documents that informed this report and to all those who gave their review comments including Georgios Zarifis Raisa Venaumllaumlinen Rimantas Dumčius and Viktorija Rusinaitė and to PPMI for their support the members of the European Commissionrsquos School Working Group for their responses as well as the Eurochild affiliated organisations and other NGOs that provided source material In addition we would like to thank the following associated with the European Network for Social and Emotional Competence (ENSEC) for their contributions Reni Dimova Alena Slezackova Ebru Ersay Peter Smith Anna Dzalalova Maria Poulou Janos Kollar Mariann Buda Mark Morgan Antonella Brighi Valeria Cavioni Simona Caravita Ersilia Mensini Sarah Baldacchino Lara Fenech Katinka Zahra Daan Wienke Ingar Lee Gajda Kinga Celeste Simoes Paula Lebre Anabela Santos Margarida Gaspar de Matos Aurora Adina Colomeischi Eva Tomkovaacute Rosario Ortega-Ruiz Olga Goacutemez-Ortiz Linda Beckman and Birgitta Kimber Many thanks are also due to a large number of colleagues from the BRNET Bullying Research Network University of Nebraska-Lincoln for sending us key recent research papers to help inform the report Our thanks also to Ilona Murphy for her help and to Valerie McLoughlin for her work on the document Responsibility for any errors or omissions and views expressed in the report rest with the authors
How to Prevent and Tackle Bullying and School Violence
3
EXECUTIVE SUMMARY
School bullying concerns all EU member states It is an affront to the common values of freedom tolerance and non-discrimination Its effects are serious and may be long-term It is not only a problem for education policy to address It is also a health and welfare issue relevant to child protection
School bullying can affect the mental and physical health as well as the academic performance of children and young people and may lead to early school leaving In many cases bullying leads victims to suicide or attempted suicide anxiety depression and self-harm Being a perpetrator of bullying is associated with later violent behaviour and anti-social personality disorder
The aim of this report is to inform policy-makers and practitioners at EU national regional and local level on the most effective strategies and practices for preventing bullying and violence in schools across the EU It examines evidence from European and international research reviews national practices and the work civil society organisations with regard to school bullying and violence
Bullying is to be understood as physical verbal and relational behaviours which involves one party having the intention to repeatedly hurt or harm another within an uneven power relationship where the victim is unable to defend himherself (Olweus 1999)
1 PREVALENCE OF SCHOOL BULLYING
- School bullying takes many forms These include discriminatory bullying against minority groups homophobic bullying and bullying against students with special needs or any student who seem vulnerable for his or her peers
- There is a clear gender difference in school bullying trends in Europe with the rates of boys being higher than that of girls in most of the countries Both victimisation (being a victim of school bullying) and perpetration (being a person bullying others) are more common among boys
- The prevalence of bullying varies considerably across Europe Lithuania Belgium Estonia Austria and Latvia are some of the countries with relatively high victimisation rates between around 20 and 30 1 compared to the lower rates of Denmark Sweden Czech Republic Croatia Italy and Spain below 10
- Bullying perpetrator rates increase significantly from 11 to 15 years In most European countries the increase is relatively small but in a few countries it is more than 10 points amongst boys (eg Latvia Greece Austria Luxembourg)
2 THE NEED FOR COMPREHENSIVE STRATEGIES
- Bullying can be a complex problem to solve which requires a comprehensive multidimensional approach The lack of a systematic approach to address school bullying is an issue of concern for many Member States among them some with particularly high bullying rates
- National school bullying and violence prevention strategies are lacking in many European countries
- Homophobic bullying lacks a strategic focus in many EU Member States According to the EU Agency for Fundamental Rights survey the highest levels of hostility and prejudice towards LGBTI groups recorded in the EU are in Bulgaria Hungary Italy Latvia Lithuania Poland and Romania It is notable that very few of these countries address prevention of homophobic bullying in schools in a strategic manner
1 Based on a national sample of the school population between ages 11 and 15
How to Prevent and Tackle Bullying and School Violence
4
- Similarly the prevention of discriminatory bullying in school (against groups such as Roma minorities migrants as well as against those experiencing poverty and socio-economic exclusion) needs a stronger strategic focus in many EU Member States
- Cross-departmental policy synergies between education and health are needed for more effective preventions of school bullying
3 SUCCESS FACTORS
- International reviews of whole school approaches to bullying prevention do not endorse one particular model but they highlight some key features of successful interventions The most effective programme elements associated with a decrease in bullying others parent trainingmeetings teacher training improved playground supervision videos about the consequences of bullying disciplinary methods (that are not reducible to punitive or zero tolerance approaches) cooperative group work between professionals school assemblies support for parents appropriate classroom management and rules and a whole school anti-bullying policy
- Strong international evidence concludes that a curricular approach to social and emotional education is key for personal development to challenge a culture of violence in school Sufficient classroom time for social and emotional education in schools across Europe is an important success factor for school bullying and violence prevention
- Working with parents is strongly associated with both a decrease in bullying and being bullied in school However many approaches to parental involvement for bullying prevention are top-down information-type approaches rather than approaches which actively involve parents
- Discriminatory bullying requires challenge through a democratic school culture promoting the different voices of students Young people who are part of minority or excluded groups must help design concrete curricular resources that address bullying and prejudice
- While not necessarily the same individuals are at risk of early school leaving and bullying possible responses show great similarities and therefore a common strategy may be useful including common systems of supports such as a transition focus to post-primary multidisciplinary teams for complex needs language support family outreach supports and teacher professional development on issues relevant to preventing both problems
- Family support services for early intervention are crucial for the prevention of school bullying and violence just as they are for positive mental health A lsquoone-stop shoprsquo where multidisciplinary services across health and education are available at local level is the most effective way to engage families with a range of needs for emotional and communicative support
- A specific community outreach strategy which offers opportunities for intercultural contacts is an important approach for overcoming prejudice between groups This can be facilitated by shared communal spaces which bring different groups together such as community lifelong learning centres arts and sports facilities libraries green spaces community afterschool centres family resource centres religious centres gyms
- Successful national approaches may include explicit focus on bullying and violence prevention in governance structures and processes such as school self-evaluation external inspection and whole school planning and national committees for student welfare
HOW TO OBTAIN EU PUBLICATIONS
Free publications
bull one copy via EU Bookshop (httpbookshopeuropaeu)
bull more than one copy or postersmaps from the European Unionrsquos representations (httpeceuropaeurepresent_enhtm) from the delegations in non-EU countries (httpeeaseuropaeudelegationsindex_enhtm) by contacting the Europe Direct service (httpeuropaeueuropedirectindex_enhtm) or calling 00 800 6 7 8 9 10 11 (freephone number from anywhere in the EU) () () The information given is free as are most calls (though some operators phone boxes or hotels may charge you)
Priced publications
bull via EU Bookshop (httpbookshopeuropaeu)
NC-04-15-455-EN-N
ISBN 978-92-79-49063-7
This document has been prepared for the European Commission however it reflects the views only of the authors and the Commission cannot be held responsible for any use which may be made of the information contained therein
Europe Direct is a service to help you find answers to your questions about the European Union
Freephone number ()
00 800 6 7 8 9 10 11
() The information given is free as are most calls (though some operators phone boxes or hotels may charge you)
More information on the European Union is available on the Internet (httpeuropaeu) Luxembourg Publications Office of the European Union 2016 ISBN 978-92-79-49063-7 doi 102766765403 copy European Union 2016 Cover image copy depositphotoscom Reproduction is authorised provided the source is acknowledged
How to Prevent and Tackle Bullying and School Violence
2
AUTHORS
Paul Downes Institute of Education Dublin City University
Carmel Cefai Centre for Resilience and Socio-Emotional Health University of Malta
CONTRIBUTORS
Laima Vaigė Mykolas Romeris University Institute of International and European Union Law
Vanessa Jantzer Department of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry Center for Psychosocial Medicine University of Heidelberg
Yves Montoya LACES EA 4140 University of Bordeaux
Georgios Zarifis Department of Education Aristotle University of Thessaloniki
Emil Buzov Step by Step Program Foundation
LANGUAGE EDITOR
Siobhan Denham Freelance copy-editor proofreader
ABOUT THE AUTHORS
Dr Paul Downes is Senior Lecturer in Education (Psychology) Director of the Educational Disadvantage Centre Dublin City University Ireland He has been involved in various expert advisory roles for the European Commission including for its School Policy Working Groups He has been a Visiting Research Fellow at University of Cambridge Lauterpacht Centre for International Law a member of the Irish Senate and Parliament Expert Advisory Group on early school leaving an advisor to the Irish National Disabiliity Authority report on bullying and a consultant for the OSCE (Organisation for Security and Cooperation in Europe) Published internationally in areas of psychology education law philosophy anthropology and social policy he has given keynotes and invited presentations in more than 20 countries Email pauldownesdcuie
Professor Carmel Cefai PhD (Lond) FBPS is the Director of the Centre for Resilience and Socio-Emotional Health and Head of the Department of Psychology at the University of Malta He is Joint Honorary Chair of the European Network for Social and Emotional Competence and joint founding editor of the International Journal of Emotional Education He has led various research projects in mental health in schools risk and resilience in children and young people childrenrsquos wellbeing and the development of a resilience curriculum Recent publications include RESCUR Surfing the Waves A Resilience Curriculum for Early Years and Primary Schools (2015) published in 7 languages and Social and Emotional Education Primary School Integrating Theory and Research into Practice (Springer USA 2014) Email carmelcefaiumedumt
ABOUT THE NETWORK NESET II is an advisory network of experts working on the social dimension of education and training The European Commissionrsquos Directorate-General for Education and Culture initiated the establishment of the network as the successor to NESSE (2007-2010) and NESET (2011-2014) The Public Policy and Management Institute (PPMI) is responsible for the administration of the NESET II network
Please cite this publication as
Downes P Cefai C How to Prevent and Tackle Bullying and School Violence Evidence and Practices for Strategies for Inclusive and Safe Schools NESET II report Luxembourg Publications Office of the European Union 2016 doi 102766765403
CONTRACTOR
Public Policy and Management Institute Gedimino ave 50 LT - 01110 Vilnius Lithuania Phone +370 5 2620338 Fax +370 5 2625410 wwwppmilt
Director Haroldas Brožaitis
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS
Many thanks to Laima Vaige Vanessa Jantzer Yves Montoya and Emil Buzov for their background documents that informed this report and to all those who gave their review comments including Georgios Zarifis Raisa Venaumllaumlinen Rimantas Dumčius and Viktorija Rusinaitė and to PPMI for their support the members of the European Commissionrsquos School Working Group for their responses as well as the Eurochild affiliated organisations and other NGOs that provided source material In addition we would like to thank the following associated with the European Network for Social and Emotional Competence (ENSEC) for their contributions Reni Dimova Alena Slezackova Ebru Ersay Peter Smith Anna Dzalalova Maria Poulou Janos Kollar Mariann Buda Mark Morgan Antonella Brighi Valeria Cavioni Simona Caravita Ersilia Mensini Sarah Baldacchino Lara Fenech Katinka Zahra Daan Wienke Ingar Lee Gajda Kinga Celeste Simoes Paula Lebre Anabela Santos Margarida Gaspar de Matos Aurora Adina Colomeischi Eva Tomkovaacute Rosario Ortega-Ruiz Olga Goacutemez-Ortiz Linda Beckman and Birgitta Kimber Many thanks are also due to a large number of colleagues from the BRNET Bullying Research Network University of Nebraska-Lincoln for sending us key recent research papers to help inform the report Our thanks also to Ilona Murphy for her help and to Valerie McLoughlin for her work on the document Responsibility for any errors or omissions and views expressed in the report rest with the authors
How to Prevent and Tackle Bullying and School Violence
3
EXECUTIVE SUMMARY
School bullying concerns all EU member states It is an affront to the common values of freedom tolerance and non-discrimination Its effects are serious and may be long-term It is not only a problem for education policy to address It is also a health and welfare issue relevant to child protection
School bullying can affect the mental and physical health as well as the academic performance of children and young people and may lead to early school leaving In many cases bullying leads victims to suicide or attempted suicide anxiety depression and self-harm Being a perpetrator of bullying is associated with later violent behaviour and anti-social personality disorder
The aim of this report is to inform policy-makers and practitioners at EU national regional and local level on the most effective strategies and practices for preventing bullying and violence in schools across the EU It examines evidence from European and international research reviews national practices and the work civil society organisations with regard to school bullying and violence
Bullying is to be understood as physical verbal and relational behaviours which involves one party having the intention to repeatedly hurt or harm another within an uneven power relationship where the victim is unable to defend himherself (Olweus 1999)
1 PREVALENCE OF SCHOOL BULLYING
- School bullying takes many forms These include discriminatory bullying against minority groups homophobic bullying and bullying against students with special needs or any student who seem vulnerable for his or her peers
- There is a clear gender difference in school bullying trends in Europe with the rates of boys being higher than that of girls in most of the countries Both victimisation (being a victim of school bullying) and perpetration (being a person bullying others) are more common among boys
- The prevalence of bullying varies considerably across Europe Lithuania Belgium Estonia Austria and Latvia are some of the countries with relatively high victimisation rates between around 20 and 30 1 compared to the lower rates of Denmark Sweden Czech Republic Croatia Italy and Spain below 10
- Bullying perpetrator rates increase significantly from 11 to 15 years In most European countries the increase is relatively small but in a few countries it is more than 10 points amongst boys (eg Latvia Greece Austria Luxembourg)
2 THE NEED FOR COMPREHENSIVE STRATEGIES
- Bullying can be a complex problem to solve which requires a comprehensive multidimensional approach The lack of a systematic approach to address school bullying is an issue of concern for many Member States among them some with particularly high bullying rates
- National school bullying and violence prevention strategies are lacking in many European countries
- Homophobic bullying lacks a strategic focus in many EU Member States According to the EU Agency for Fundamental Rights survey the highest levels of hostility and prejudice towards LGBTI groups recorded in the EU are in Bulgaria Hungary Italy Latvia Lithuania Poland and Romania It is notable that very few of these countries address prevention of homophobic bullying in schools in a strategic manner
1 Based on a national sample of the school population between ages 11 and 15
How to Prevent and Tackle Bullying and School Violence
4
- Similarly the prevention of discriminatory bullying in school (against groups such as Roma minorities migrants as well as against those experiencing poverty and socio-economic exclusion) needs a stronger strategic focus in many EU Member States
- Cross-departmental policy synergies between education and health are needed for more effective preventions of school bullying
3 SUCCESS FACTORS
- International reviews of whole school approaches to bullying prevention do not endorse one particular model but they highlight some key features of successful interventions The most effective programme elements associated with a decrease in bullying others parent trainingmeetings teacher training improved playground supervision videos about the consequences of bullying disciplinary methods (that are not reducible to punitive or zero tolerance approaches) cooperative group work between professionals school assemblies support for parents appropriate classroom management and rules and a whole school anti-bullying policy
- Strong international evidence concludes that a curricular approach to social and emotional education is key for personal development to challenge a culture of violence in school Sufficient classroom time for social and emotional education in schools across Europe is an important success factor for school bullying and violence prevention
- Working with parents is strongly associated with both a decrease in bullying and being bullied in school However many approaches to parental involvement for bullying prevention are top-down information-type approaches rather than approaches which actively involve parents
- Discriminatory bullying requires challenge through a democratic school culture promoting the different voices of students Young people who are part of minority or excluded groups must help design concrete curricular resources that address bullying and prejudice
- While not necessarily the same individuals are at risk of early school leaving and bullying possible responses show great similarities and therefore a common strategy may be useful including common systems of supports such as a transition focus to post-primary multidisciplinary teams for complex needs language support family outreach supports and teacher professional development on issues relevant to preventing both problems
- Family support services for early intervention are crucial for the prevention of school bullying and violence just as they are for positive mental health A lsquoone-stop shoprsquo where multidisciplinary services across health and education are available at local level is the most effective way to engage families with a range of needs for emotional and communicative support
- A specific community outreach strategy which offers opportunities for intercultural contacts is an important approach for overcoming prejudice between groups This can be facilitated by shared communal spaces which bring different groups together such as community lifelong learning centres arts and sports facilities libraries green spaces community afterschool centres family resource centres religious centres gyms
- Successful national approaches may include explicit focus on bullying and violence prevention in governance structures and processes such as school self-evaluation external inspection and whole school planning and national committees for student welfare
HOW TO OBTAIN EU PUBLICATIONS
Free publications
bull one copy via EU Bookshop (httpbookshopeuropaeu)
bull more than one copy or postersmaps from the European Unionrsquos representations (httpeceuropaeurepresent_enhtm) from the delegations in non-EU countries (httpeeaseuropaeudelegationsindex_enhtm) by contacting the Europe Direct service (httpeuropaeueuropedirectindex_enhtm) or calling 00 800 6 7 8 9 10 11 (freephone number from anywhere in the EU) () () The information given is free as are most calls (though some operators phone boxes or hotels may charge you)
Priced publications
bull via EU Bookshop (httpbookshopeuropaeu)
NC-04-15-455-EN-N
ISBN 978-92-79-49063-7
How to Prevent and Tackle Bullying and School Violence
2
AUTHORS
Paul Downes Institute of Education Dublin City University
Carmel Cefai Centre for Resilience and Socio-Emotional Health University of Malta
CONTRIBUTORS
Laima Vaigė Mykolas Romeris University Institute of International and European Union Law
Vanessa Jantzer Department of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry Center for Psychosocial Medicine University of Heidelberg
Yves Montoya LACES EA 4140 University of Bordeaux
Georgios Zarifis Department of Education Aristotle University of Thessaloniki
Emil Buzov Step by Step Program Foundation
LANGUAGE EDITOR
Siobhan Denham Freelance copy-editor proofreader
ABOUT THE AUTHORS
Dr Paul Downes is Senior Lecturer in Education (Psychology) Director of the Educational Disadvantage Centre Dublin City University Ireland He has been involved in various expert advisory roles for the European Commission including for its School Policy Working Groups He has been a Visiting Research Fellow at University of Cambridge Lauterpacht Centre for International Law a member of the Irish Senate and Parliament Expert Advisory Group on early school leaving an advisor to the Irish National Disabiliity Authority report on bullying and a consultant for the OSCE (Organisation for Security and Cooperation in Europe) Published internationally in areas of psychology education law philosophy anthropology and social policy he has given keynotes and invited presentations in more than 20 countries Email pauldownesdcuie
Professor Carmel Cefai PhD (Lond) FBPS is the Director of the Centre for Resilience and Socio-Emotional Health and Head of the Department of Psychology at the University of Malta He is Joint Honorary Chair of the European Network for Social and Emotional Competence and joint founding editor of the International Journal of Emotional Education He has led various research projects in mental health in schools risk and resilience in children and young people childrenrsquos wellbeing and the development of a resilience curriculum Recent publications include RESCUR Surfing the Waves A Resilience Curriculum for Early Years and Primary Schools (2015) published in 7 languages and Social and Emotional Education Primary School Integrating Theory and Research into Practice (Springer USA 2014) Email carmelcefaiumedumt
ABOUT THE NETWORK NESET II is an advisory network of experts working on the social dimension of education and training The European Commissionrsquos Directorate-General for Education and Culture initiated the establishment of the network as the successor to NESSE (2007-2010) and NESET (2011-2014) The Public Policy and Management Institute (PPMI) is responsible for the administration of the NESET II network
Please cite this publication as
Downes P Cefai C How to Prevent and Tackle Bullying and School Violence Evidence and Practices for Strategies for Inclusive and Safe Schools NESET II report Luxembourg Publications Office of the European Union 2016 doi 102766765403
CONTRACTOR
Public Policy and Management Institute Gedimino ave 50 LT - 01110 Vilnius Lithuania Phone +370 5 2620338 Fax +370 5 2625410 wwwppmilt
Director Haroldas Brožaitis
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS
Many thanks to Laima Vaige Vanessa Jantzer Yves Montoya and Emil Buzov for their background documents that informed this report and to all those who gave their review comments including Georgios Zarifis Raisa Venaumllaumlinen Rimantas Dumčius and Viktorija Rusinaitė and to PPMI for their support the members of the European Commissionrsquos School Working Group for their responses as well as the Eurochild affiliated organisations and other NGOs that provided source material In addition we would like to thank the following associated with the European Network for Social and Emotional Competence (ENSEC) for their contributions Reni Dimova Alena Slezackova Ebru Ersay Peter Smith Anna Dzalalova Maria Poulou Janos Kollar Mariann Buda Mark Morgan Antonella Brighi Valeria Cavioni Simona Caravita Ersilia Mensini Sarah Baldacchino Lara Fenech Katinka Zahra Daan Wienke Ingar Lee Gajda Kinga Celeste Simoes Paula Lebre Anabela Santos Margarida Gaspar de Matos Aurora Adina Colomeischi Eva Tomkovaacute Rosario Ortega-Ruiz Olga Goacutemez-Ortiz Linda Beckman and Birgitta Kimber Many thanks are also due to a large number of colleagues from the BRNET Bullying Research Network University of Nebraska-Lincoln for sending us key recent research papers to help inform the report Our thanks also to Ilona Murphy for her help and to Valerie McLoughlin for her work on the document Responsibility for any errors or omissions and views expressed in the report rest with the authors
How to Prevent and Tackle Bullying and School Violence
3
EXECUTIVE SUMMARY
School bullying concerns all EU member states It is an affront to the common values of freedom tolerance and non-discrimination Its effects are serious and may be long-term It is not only a problem for education policy to address It is also a health and welfare issue relevant to child protection
School bullying can affect the mental and physical health as well as the academic performance of children and young people and may lead to early school leaving In many cases bullying leads victims to suicide or attempted suicide anxiety depression and self-harm Being a perpetrator of bullying is associated with later violent behaviour and anti-social personality disorder
The aim of this report is to inform policy-makers and practitioners at EU national regional and local level on the most effective strategies and practices for preventing bullying and violence in schools across the EU It examines evidence from European and international research reviews national practices and the work civil society organisations with regard to school bullying and violence
Bullying is to be understood as physical verbal and relational behaviours which involves one party having the intention to repeatedly hurt or harm another within an uneven power relationship where the victim is unable to defend himherself (Olweus 1999)
1 PREVALENCE OF SCHOOL BULLYING
- School bullying takes many forms These include discriminatory bullying against minority groups homophobic bullying and bullying against students with special needs or any student who seem vulnerable for his or her peers
- There is a clear gender difference in school bullying trends in Europe with the rates of boys being higher than that of girls in most of the countries Both victimisation (being a victim of school bullying) and perpetration (being a person bullying others) are more common among boys
- The prevalence of bullying varies considerably across Europe Lithuania Belgium Estonia Austria and Latvia are some of the countries with relatively high victimisation rates between around 20 and 30 1 compared to the lower rates of Denmark Sweden Czech Republic Croatia Italy and Spain below 10
- Bullying perpetrator rates increase significantly from 11 to 15 years In most European countries the increase is relatively small but in a few countries it is more than 10 points amongst boys (eg Latvia Greece Austria Luxembourg)
2 THE NEED FOR COMPREHENSIVE STRATEGIES
- Bullying can be a complex problem to solve which requires a comprehensive multidimensional approach The lack of a systematic approach to address school bullying is an issue of concern for many Member States among them some with particularly high bullying rates
- National school bullying and violence prevention strategies are lacking in many European countries
- Homophobic bullying lacks a strategic focus in many EU Member States According to the EU Agency for Fundamental Rights survey the highest levels of hostility and prejudice towards LGBTI groups recorded in the EU are in Bulgaria Hungary Italy Latvia Lithuania Poland and Romania It is notable that very few of these countries address prevention of homophobic bullying in schools in a strategic manner
1 Based on a national sample of the school population between ages 11 and 15
How to Prevent and Tackle Bullying and School Violence
4
- Similarly the prevention of discriminatory bullying in school (against groups such as Roma minorities migrants as well as against those experiencing poverty and socio-economic exclusion) needs a stronger strategic focus in many EU Member States
- Cross-departmental policy synergies between education and health are needed for more effective preventions of school bullying
3 SUCCESS FACTORS
- International reviews of whole school approaches to bullying prevention do not endorse one particular model but they highlight some key features of successful interventions The most effective programme elements associated with a decrease in bullying others parent trainingmeetings teacher training improved playground supervision videos about the consequences of bullying disciplinary methods (that are not reducible to punitive or zero tolerance approaches) cooperative group work between professionals school assemblies support for parents appropriate classroom management and rules and a whole school anti-bullying policy
- Strong international evidence concludes that a curricular approach to social and emotional education is key for personal development to challenge a culture of violence in school Sufficient classroom time for social and emotional education in schools across Europe is an important success factor for school bullying and violence prevention
- Working with parents is strongly associated with both a decrease in bullying and being bullied in school However many approaches to parental involvement for bullying prevention are top-down information-type approaches rather than approaches which actively involve parents
- Discriminatory bullying requires challenge through a democratic school culture promoting the different voices of students Young people who are part of minority or excluded groups must help design concrete curricular resources that address bullying and prejudice
- While not necessarily the same individuals are at risk of early school leaving and bullying possible responses show great similarities and therefore a common strategy may be useful including common systems of supports such as a transition focus to post-primary multidisciplinary teams for complex needs language support family outreach supports and teacher professional development on issues relevant to preventing both problems
- Family support services for early intervention are crucial for the prevention of school bullying and violence just as they are for positive mental health A lsquoone-stop shoprsquo where multidisciplinary services across health and education are available at local level is the most effective way to engage families with a range of needs for emotional and communicative support
- A specific community outreach strategy which offers opportunities for intercultural contacts is an important approach for overcoming prejudice between groups This can be facilitated by shared communal spaces which bring different groups together such as community lifelong learning centres arts and sports facilities libraries green spaces community afterschool centres family resource centres religious centres gyms
- Successful national approaches may include explicit focus on bullying and violence prevention in governance structures and processes such as school self-evaluation external inspection and whole school planning and national committees for student welfare
HOW TO OBTAIN EU PUBLICATIONS
Free publications
bull one copy via EU Bookshop (httpbookshopeuropaeu)
bull more than one copy or postersmaps from the European Unionrsquos representations (httpeceuropaeurepresent_enhtm) from the delegations in non-EU countries (httpeeaseuropaeudelegationsindex_enhtm) by contacting the Europe Direct service (httpeuropaeueuropedirectindex_enhtm) or calling 00 800 6 7 8 9 10 11 (freephone number from anywhere in the EU) () () The information given is free as are most calls (though some operators phone boxes or hotels may charge you)
Priced publications
bull via EU Bookshop (httpbookshopeuropaeu)
NC-04-15-455-EN-N
ISBN 978-92-79-49063-7
How to Prevent and Tackle Bullying and School Violence
3
EXECUTIVE SUMMARY
School bullying concerns all EU member states It is an affront to the common values of freedom tolerance and non-discrimination Its effects are serious and may be long-term It is not only a problem for education policy to address It is also a health and welfare issue relevant to child protection
School bullying can affect the mental and physical health as well as the academic performance of children and young people and may lead to early school leaving In many cases bullying leads victims to suicide or attempted suicide anxiety depression and self-harm Being a perpetrator of bullying is associated with later violent behaviour and anti-social personality disorder
The aim of this report is to inform policy-makers and practitioners at EU national regional and local level on the most effective strategies and practices for preventing bullying and violence in schools across the EU It examines evidence from European and international research reviews national practices and the work civil society organisations with regard to school bullying and violence
Bullying is to be understood as physical verbal and relational behaviours which involves one party having the intention to repeatedly hurt or harm another within an uneven power relationship where the victim is unable to defend himherself (Olweus 1999)
1 PREVALENCE OF SCHOOL BULLYING
- School bullying takes many forms These include discriminatory bullying against minority groups homophobic bullying and bullying against students with special needs or any student who seem vulnerable for his or her peers
- There is a clear gender difference in school bullying trends in Europe with the rates of boys being higher than that of girls in most of the countries Both victimisation (being a victim of school bullying) and perpetration (being a person bullying others) are more common among boys
- The prevalence of bullying varies considerably across Europe Lithuania Belgium Estonia Austria and Latvia are some of the countries with relatively high victimisation rates between around 20 and 30 1 compared to the lower rates of Denmark Sweden Czech Republic Croatia Italy and Spain below 10
- Bullying perpetrator rates increase significantly from 11 to 15 years In most European countries the increase is relatively small but in a few countries it is more than 10 points amongst boys (eg Latvia Greece Austria Luxembourg)
2 THE NEED FOR COMPREHENSIVE STRATEGIES
- Bullying can be a complex problem to solve which requires a comprehensive multidimensional approach The lack of a systematic approach to address school bullying is an issue of concern for many Member States among them some with particularly high bullying rates
- National school bullying and violence prevention strategies are lacking in many European countries
- Homophobic bullying lacks a strategic focus in many EU Member States According to the EU Agency for Fundamental Rights survey the highest levels of hostility and prejudice towards LGBTI groups recorded in the EU are in Bulgaria Hungary Italy Latvia Lithuania Poland and Romania It is notable that very few of these countries address prevention of homophobic bullying in schools in a strategic manner
1 Based on a national sample of the school population between ages 11 and 15
How to Prevent and Tackle Bullying and School Violence
4
- Similarly the prevention of discriminatory bullying in school (against groups such as Roma minorities migrants as well as against those experiencing poverty and socio-economic exclusion) needs a stronger strategic focus in many EU Member States
- Cross-departmental policy synergies between education and health are needed for more effective preventions of school bullying
3 SUCCESS FACTORS
- International reviews of whole school approaches to bullying prevention do not endorse one particular model but they highlight some key features of successful interventions The most effective programme elements associated with a decrease in bullying others parent trainingmeetings teacher training improved playground supervision videos about the consequences of bullying disciplinary methods (that are not reducible to punitive or zero tolerance approaches) cooperative group work between professionals school assemblies support for parents appropriate classroom management and rules and a whole school anti-bullying policy
- Strong international evidence concludes that a curricular approach to social and emotional education is key for personal development to challenge a culture of violence in school Sufficient classroom time for social and emotional education in schools across Europe is an important success factor for school bullying and violence prevention
- Working with parents is strongly associated with both a decrease in bullying and being bullied in school However many approaches to parental involvement for bullying prevention are top-down information-type approaches rather than approaches which actively involve parents
- Discriminatory bullying requires challenge through a democratic school culture promoting the different voices of students Young people who are part of minority or excluded groups must help design concrete curricular resources that address bullying and prejudice
- While not necessarily the same individuals are at risk of early school leaving and bullying possible responses show great similarities and therefore a common strategy may be useful including common systems of supports such as a transition focus to post-primary multidisciplinary teams for complex needs language support family outreach supports and teacher professional development on issues relevant to preventing both problems
- Family support services for early intervention are crucial for the prevention of school bullying and violence just as they are for positive mental health A lsquoone-stop shoprsquo where multidisciplinary services across health and education are available at local level is the most effective way to engage families with a range of needs for emotional and communicative support
- A specific community outreach strategy which offers opportunities for intercultural contacts is an important approach for overcoming prejudice between groups This can be facilitated by shared communal spaces which bring different groups together such as community lifelong learning centres arts and sports facilities libraries green spaces community afterschool centres family resource centres religious centres gyms
- Successful national approaches may include explicit focus on bullying and violence prevention in governance structures and processes such as school self-evaluation external inspection and whole school planning and national committees for student welfare
HOW TO OBTAIN EU PUBLICATIONS
Free publications
bull one copy via EU Bookshop (httpbookshopeuropaeu)
bull more than one copy or postersmaps from the European Unionrsquos representations (httpeceuropaeurepresent_enhtm) from the delegations in non-EU countries (httpeeaseuropaeudelegationsindex_enhtm) by contacting the Europe Direct service (httpeuropaeueuropedirectindex_enhtm) or calling 00 800 6 7 8 9 10 11 (freephone number from anywhere in the EU) () () The information given is free as are most calls (though some operators phone boxes or hotels may charge you)
Priced publications
bull via EU Bookshop (httpbookshopeuropaeu)
NC-04-15-455-EN-N
ISBN 978-92-79-49063-7
How to Prevent and Tackle Bullying and School Violence
4
- Similarly the prevention of discriminatory bullying in school (against groups such as Roma minorities migrants as well as against those experiencing poverty and socio-economic exclusion) needs a stronger strategic focus in many EU Member States
- Cross-departmental policy synergies between education and health are needed for more effective preventions of school bullying
3 SUCCESS FACTORS
- International reviews of whole school approaches to bullying prevention do not endorse one particular model but they highlight some key features of successful interventions The most effective programme elements associated with a decrease in bullying others parent trainingmeetings teacher training improved playground supervision videos about the consequences of bullying disciplinary methods (that are not reducible to punitive or zero tolerance approaches) cooperative group work between professionals school assemblies support for parents appropriate classroom management and rules and a whole school anti-bullying policy
- Strong international evidence concludes that a curricular approach to social and emotional education is key for personal development to challenge a culture of violence in school Sufficient classroom time for social and emotional education in schools across Europe is an important success factor for school bullying and violence prevention
- Working with parents is strongly associated with both a decrease in bullying and being bullied in school However many approaches to parental involvement for bullying prevention are top-down information-type approaches rather than approaches which actively involve parents
- Discriminatory bullying requires challenge through a democratic school culture promoting the different voices of students Young people who are part of minority or excluded groups must help design concrete curricular resources that address bullying and prejudice
- While not necessarily the same individuals are at risk of early school leaving and bullying possible responses show great similarities and therefore a common strategy may be useful including common systems of supports such as a transition focus to post-primary multidisciplinary teams for complex needs language support family outreach supports and teacher professional development on issues relevant to preventing both problems
- Family support services for early intervention are crucial for the prevention of school bullying and violence just as they are for positive mental health A lsquoone-stop shoprsquo where multidisciplinary services across health and education are available at local level is the most effective way to engage families with a range of needs for emotional and communicative support
- A specific community outreach strategy which offers opportunities for intercultural contacts is an important approach for overcoming prejudice between groups This can be facilitated by shared communal spaces which bring different groups together such as community lifelong learning centres arts and sports facilities libraries green spaces community afterschool centres family resource centres religious centres gyms
- Successful national approaches may include explicit focus on bullying and violence prevention in governance structures and processes such as school self-evaluation external inspection and whole school planning and national committees for student welfare
HOW TO OBTAIN EU PUBLICATIONS
Free publications
bull one copy via EU Bookshop (httpbookshopeuropaeu)
bull more than one copy or postersmaps from the European Unionrsquos representations (httpeceuropaeurepresent_enhtm) from the delegations in non-EU countries (httpeeaseuropaeudelegationsindex_enhtm) by contacting the Europe Direct service (httpeuropaeueuropedirectindex_enhtm) or calling 00 800 6 7 8 9 10 11 (freephone number from anywhere in the EU) () () The information given is free as are most calls (though some operators phone boxes or hotels may charge you)
Priced publications
bull via EU Bookshop (httpbookshopeuropaeu)
NC-04-15-455-EN-N
ISBN 978-92-79-49063-7
HOW TO OBTAIN EU PUBLICATIONS
Free publications
bull one copy via EU Bookshop (httpbookshopeuropaeu)
bull more than one copy or postersmaps from the European Unionrsquos representations (httpeceuropaeurepresent_enhtm) from the delegations in non-EU countries (httpeeaseuropaeudelegationsindex_enhtm) by contacting the Europe Direct service (httpeuropaeueuropedirectindex_enhtm) or calling 00 800 6 7 8 9 10 11 (freephone number from anywhere in the EU) () () The information given is free as are most calls (though some operators phone boxes or hotels may charge you)
Priced publications
bull via EU Bookshop (httpbookshopeuropaeu)
NC-04-15-455-EN-N
ISBN 978-92-79-49063-7
NC-04-15-455-EN-N
ISBN 978-92-79-49063-7